Why is it that our nature is to cling to “stuff”?
We go through life amassing treasures, trinkets and just loads of junk. There are some people who do not develop attachments to their possessions but that is not the norm. Most of us hold onto our possessions like our life depends on them. Why is that?
In reality, we live in a very commercial world. The economy is based upon us wanting to acquire possessions. Marketing (which I know I take part in) always is there to tell us of the latest and the greatest that has been released to update what was we purchased last week, last month or last year. When did things stop being made to last rather than to be replaced tomorrow?
Even when we live with a simple eye, we can find ourselves holding on to everything thinking that we will find a use for it at some point in the future. I am all about reusing and repurposing but there has to be a limit, a line drawn in the sand. Just because something can be reused doesn’t mean WE always have to be the one to do so.
Clutter is a source of stress and who needs more of that added to their plate? Not I!
When I was growing up, my parents always made due with what we had. We didn’t replace something until it needed to be. Both my parents were resourceful in their own ways. My Mother loved deals, used coupons, cooked from scratch and loved thrift store shopping! My Father was Mr. Fix-it (minus balloons and broken hearts), loved to garden and loved collecting items knowing we would use them one day (which tons of items have been.)
photo credit: theseanster93 via photopin cc
Over the years, between the two of them they have amazed an amazing collection of stuff. After spending the entire last week sorting and sorting, and sorting some more, one of my sisters and myself took 20+ bags and 20+ boxes of items out of my Father’s home in an effort to help jump-start his road to streamlining and simplifying his life. The crazy thing, if you have never been to my parent’s house, you would never know anything was missing!
Each night I came home with renewed zeal to do the same with my own home. I in no way have the amount of stuff my parents had, but do I have things I am holding onto thinking that “one day” I will use them? Absolutely! Some of them I am sure I will use, but others I am absolutely certain that even with well meaning intentions, they will continue to sit. Why should they continue to take up prime real estate in my home and be something that takes energy to preserve?
Even if you pay very little or even get something for free, possessions take time and energy to clean, preserve, use and store. Why do we allow our lives to be controlled by things that we don’t need and really don’t make us any happier? How many toys and books are actually practical to have?
Declutter Your Life
I have decided that in 2014 I am going to declutter my house and my life of the things that steal my energy and time from the more important things, my family!
Never does someone look back at their life and say they wished they had upgraded their phone sooner or wished they had bought that new purse. The bottom line, the most important things in our lives can’t be bought. We can not buy more time, more smiles, more laughter and more memories! Those are the things I wish to invest my time and energies into in 2014.
Why don’t you join me! Does your life need decluttering?
Starting Friday, I will be posting a six-week challenge to help declutter my life. If you are in need of decluttering, I would love to have you jump in and join us!
I really need to declutter. It is really something I need to work on doing.
My husband calls me the hoarder, he loves to throw things away. I always say I may need it one day but usually that day never comes. Whenever I go on vacation or away for any length of time he throws the stuff away. 🙂
I am clutter free. My husband calls me the UnHoarder. I have a rule of throwing things out if I haven’t looked at them for a certain amount of time. Now if I could only get him to do the same thing.
I need to declutter and that way I’ll more space in the house. I am the type of the person too that have no problem of letting things go or giving it away.
I like to declutter each season. It makes the house feel bigger. lol
I have a lot of things to get rid of as well. That is one of my goals this year, to declutter our home so we could have less stressful way of living.
I love keeping things that will come in usefull one day but we have a spare room not so much spare now lol which has everything we keep and well every so often we will check through and sell what we do not think we will need anymore,most of the things in there are brand new and i have had the situation where i have gotten rid of something only to need it again lol but we do sort it out every few months.
The hubby and I are in the process of decluttering also! We both are collectors, me more than him, but we have been throwing the worthless stuff and selling the worthwhile stuff on E-bay. Not only are we clearing our home of unused clutter, we also are making some $ at the same time!
I just decluttered my life but I still feel cluttered and I trashed A LOT!
I have to agree – clutter is a source of stress and makes our mind gets = well, cluttered lol. I always tell my friends too that when they are confused – just declutter! haha!
I try to declutter and to throw stuff away whenever possible. It’s very easy to start accumulating a lot of things if one is not careful.
I have no issues letting go of things I no longer use or want
I’m a closet hoarder, so I only declutter my house around spring! lol I love my stuff…
I decluttered my live a couple years ago, mine was getting rid of people though. It was not easy, but I am so much happier and more relaxed. Good luck with de-cluttering your life.
I really hate to have clutter in my house and in my life. I try to get rid of it as soon as possible and live a life of frugality. Only what I really need. It’s not always possible but it does make life better.
Oh boy, does it ever?!!! I have a storage room I rent and that’s where I move everything but it’s dumb to keep half the stuff I keep!
clutter stresses me out too. I hate a messy kitchen and living room I can’t stand a messy bedroom either. it’s just that I feed off the negative energy from the messyness.
This is such a hard issue for me! I would love to have a less cluttered home. but I was also raised with the “waist not want not” mentality. So I struggle letting go of things that I think I “Might” use in the future. I’m hoping our upcoming move can help motivate me to get rid of a lot of stuff.
I have been very slowly de-cluttering–definitely not fast enough. I have stopped buying unless it is consumable or I really really need it (like socks or boot or clothes that happen to fit). I have a stack of books that I have to bring to the book recycling bin AGAIN–and attempting to convince myself that I really don’t mind reviewing books on my Kindle on my computer–There is so much stuff that I really have to get rid of that I keep putting it off!!
Sometimes I just look around my house and want to cry. The clutter gets so out of control that I end up grabbing trash bags and just going on a massive throw away spree.
What an inspiring post is this Amanda! I am also guilty of acquiring things or hoarding them, I would say, and never taking the time to looking at my stuff and remove the items I don’t need. Decluttering is therapy and I am all for it.. I just need the strength to face it, head on! Thanks for the inspiration.
Clutter is a HUGE source of stress for me. I don’t like to collect things. My husband is exactly the opposite – we try to accomodate each other, but we still haven’t found that “happy medium”.
I have a real problem clinging to STUFF, but my Hubs is worse. We are just now starting to toss things out. I sure does keep the house a lot cleaner.